Research Guides: Gilded Age Industrialists: Gilded Age & Robber Barons

Robber Baron Mock Trial

The Robber Barons
...Their business methods gained them a label, a name that compared them to the medieval lords of the feudal world, rulers who dominated the economy, mistreated their workers, and made those who challenged them and their power pay dearly. They were the men known as the "robber barons." Among their number, a few extraordinary men stood out for their ruthless business behaviors.

Robber Baron: "the name given nineteenth-century industrial and financial tycoons who gained wealth and status by exploiting workers, governmental practices, and the environment. They further increased their earnings by eradicating competition, which allowed them to control prices of both output and labor. "

- Definition taken from the Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History

The following are databases that are suggested for this assignment.

Credo Reference
A premier virtual reference collection including encyclopedias, dictionaries, atlases, images, audio files, and videos in a wide expanse of subject areas.
Infobase American History
American History is an indispensable resource for student research. Spanning our nation’s history—from prehistory to the present day—American History was developed and curated by leading editors and scholars in the study of American history. It is composed of a variety of learning assets, including articles, images, primary source documents, timelines, videos, and slideshows.
ProQuest Central
This database serves as the central resource for researchers at all levels. Covering more than 160 subjects areas, ProQuest Central is the largest aggregated database of periodical content. This award-winning online reference resource features a highly-respected, diversified mix of content including scholarly journals, trade publications, magazines, books, newspapers, reports and videos.

Below are some example of resources you have access to through the library that relate to Cornelius Vanderbilt.

Biography Reference Bank - Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794 - 1877)
Two short biographies on Cornelius Vanderbilt.
The first tycoon: the epic life of Cornelius Vanderbilt
Book available in the North Campus Library.
Call #CT275.V23 S85 2009
If you need this book, or any other book, on a different campus, please fill out an InterLibrary Loan Request.
The Complete History of Railroads : Trade, Transport, and Expansion
eBook on railroads, includes information on Vanderbilt.

John D. Rockefeller
Credo Reference Topic Page
Biography Reference Bank - John D. Rockefeller
Three different short biographies available.

Andrew Carnegie
Credo Reference Topic Page
The Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie
eBook available through the ProQuest database.
The Incredibly Wealthy
eBook available through EBSCOhost database.
In addition to information on Andrew Carnegie, there are also entries on Cornelius Vanderbilt, John Rockefeller, and JP Morgan.

J P Morgan
Credo Reference Topic Page
Gentlemen Bankers : The World of J. P. Morgan
eBook available through ProQuest
Northern Securities Case
A landmark court case in the antitrust movement of the Progressive Era, the Northern Securities case pitted the interests of a newly formed railroad conglomerate against the federal government's authority to regulate and restrict monopoly in national markets.

eLibrary Resources

Primary Sources (Speeches, newspaper articles from the time studied, etc.)

First Fireside Chat: On the Bank Crisis
In the years following the stock market crash of 1929, bank panics frequently seized the United States as the public, fearful of sudden bank closures, withdrew their money en masse. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, responding to a large-scale bank panic in early 1933, mandated a four-day bank holiday on March 6, just two days after his inauguration. In his first Fireside Chat on March 12, Roosevelt spoke to the American people to explain the need for the bank holiday and urge the nation to remain calm and keep faith in the banking system.

Securities Act

Northern Securities Case
A landmark court case in the antitrust movement of the Progressive Era, the Northern Securities case pitted the interests of a newly formed railroad conglomerate against the federal government's authority to regulate and restrict monopoly in national markets.

Streaming Video from the Library

John D. Rockefeller's Jr.'s Contributions
George Dorr was still trying to acquire more land and hoping to turn the new national monument into a national park. Rockefeller soon became his principal patron. He built extensive scenic roads on Mt. Desert Island and donated 10,000 acres of land. Distributed by PBS Distribution.
J. Pierpont Morgan: Emperor of Wall Street
This episode of Biography sheds light on the life of John Pierpont Morgan—a man who single-handedly saved the United States from bankruptcy but was accused of being a monopolist. Distributed by A&E Television Networks. (45 minutes) Distributed by A&E Television Networks.
Andrew Carnegie: Maverick Millionaire
Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick had a tumultuous relationship. Frick engineered the Homestead strike in 1892. Frick used Pinkerton men who brought in strike breakers; Frick was shot. Carnegie never got over the scars of Homestead.
A New War Begins Full Video (01:20:19)
As the nation attempts to rebuild following the destruction of the Civil War, Cornelius Vanderbilt is the first to see the need for unity to regain America s stature in the world. Distributed by A&E Television Networks.
The Vanderbilts: An American Dynasty Full Video (44:12)
Cornelius Vanderbilt was born in New York in 1794. He grew up on the banks of New York Bay on Staten Island where his father kept a small farm and ferried goods to Manhattan. Cornelius left school at age 11 and became a scholar of the harbor. Listen to his story to find out how he parlayed his love of boats and keen business sense into an American dynasty. Distributed by A&E Television Networks. (45 minutes) Distributed by A&E Television Networks.
Robber Baron (2 min 10 seconds)
DESCRIPTION
By the 1880s, Rockefeller was among America's wealthiest men; historians compare him to Bill Gates. Distributed by A&E Television Networks.
Taking on Monopolies Segment 7 (05:33) from What Would Teddy Do?
The Great Recession has echoes of Roosevelt’s time. Roosevelt took on J. P. Morgan’s Northern Securities Trust, in addition to other companies. Reich says Roosevelt understood that free market rules must be fair. Bill O’Reilly says Roosevelt would have punished the people responsible for the 2008 economic meltdown. A National Geographic Production.

Students have access to multiple streaming media platforms through the library.

Over the next few tabs you will find some of the the videos available to you that relate to the Robber Barons.

Gilded Age Industrialists: Gilded Age & Robber Barons

New All-in-One Search

Robber Baron Mock Trial

eLibrary Resources

Primary Sources (Speeches, newspaper articles from the time studied, etc.)

Securities Act

Streaming Video from the Library